Frequently Asked Questions
- What do I do when someone dies?
- What are the funeral choices and costs?
- Why is Sincerity Funerals so much more affordable?
- How soon can the funeral take place?
- Will the same person look after me all the way through?
- Who do I need to notify?
- What is pre-planning, pre-paying, a funeral bond and funeral insurance?
- How do I avoid being taken advantage of?
What do I do when someone dies?
This will depend on where the person died and the circumstances of their passing. If the person passed away through illness at home you will need to contact the doctor to sign the death certificate. If the doctor cannot sign the paperwork, or if there was no known illness, then the police must be called and the deceased will need to be transferred to the Coroners. Funeral Directors cannot place the deceased into their care without either the doctor’s death certificate or coroner’s certificate. If the person passed away in a nursing home the staff will contact the doctor for you and then notify us when the certificates have been completed. If the death happens in a hospital the attending doctor will usually issue the certificates required. Most certainly we are available 24 hours a day seven days a week to help you if you need advice – 9540 9559.
What are the funeral choices and costs?
The usual choice is either a cremation or burial and this is simply a personal decision, however the costs vary significantly according to personal choices made.
(A) Sincerity Funerals : No Service No Attendance Cremation from $3500 includes:
- Transfer to mortuary in weekday business hours
- Transfer to private crematorium
- Cremation fee at our utilized private crematorium
- Cremation capsule
- Storage / refrigerated care at our registered mortuary
- Professional fee
- Death certificate NSW BD&M
- Dr’s medical forms for cremation
Transfers utilize accredited vehicles.
The ashes will be returned to you within a travel urn with an engraved nameplate
(B) Sincerity Funerals : Cremation Service With Attendance Single Venue from $6580 includes:
- Transfer to mortuary in weekday business hours $395
- Transportation by hearse direct to Sydney metro crematorium $1300
- Sydney metro cremation fees are $1400 as the rounded example at Woronora Crematorium, others vary.
- A choice of (3) polished coffins with handles $1100
- Storage / refrigerated care at our registered mortuary maximum 7 days $300
- Professional Fee $1800
- Death certificate NSW BD&M $65
- Dr’s medical forms for cremation $220 usually, but is a deregulated medical cost and can be up to $480
Transfers utilize accredited vehicles. Transport to crematorium is by hearse.
(C) Sincerity Funerals : Graveside Service With Attendance from $4960 includes:
- Transfer to mortuary in weekday business hours $395
- Transportation by hearse direct to Sydney metro cemetery $1300
- A choice of (3) polished coffins with handles $1100
- Storage / refrigerated care at our registered mortuary maximum 7 days $300
- Professional Fee $1800
- Death certificate NSW BD&M $65
Cemetery costs are not included in this price, vary significantly, and are to be paid for in advance by the client.
Interment at Woronora Cemetery at $2717 is their cheapest at grave cost after grave purchase for example.
Other cemeteries will vary greatly in price, and due diligence is required by the client when obtaining prices.
Transfers utilize accredited vehicles. Transport to cemetery is by hearse.
(D) Sincerity Funerals : Other Fees as required or requested:
- Dressing of deceased by qualified morticians if requested $180
- Removal of pacemaker by qualified mortician as required for cremation $180
- Signature memorial book for attended funerals $50
- Use of our chapel for a service, viewing or both combined $400 per hour.
- 2nd venue onwards including any reloading of the coffin into the hearse $440 per hour
(E) Other goods and services that we can arrange at cost but are supplied by third-parties:
- Flowers $250 as a guide
- Booklets $400 for 100 in colour as a guide
- Slideshow and music, price dependent on amount of photos $280 as a guide
- Death and funeral notice in various publications $250 as a guide for a simple notice
- Clergy or celebrant by request $400 as a guide
- Livestreaming $900 as a guide from private venues or churches but usually included at cemetery chapels
DISCLAIMER : These prices are for guide purposes only and can change without notice.
These are not “pre-paid funerals”, however these prices require payment prior to the service.
Our registered mortuary is located on Bonds Rd at Riverwood and managed by John Hibbert.
Why is Sincerity Funerals so much more affordable?
It pleases me to be able to offer families a dignified and professional funeral service at a much more sensible price. Unlike the big companies who are trying to Americanize the funeral industry for greater profit, we have remained simple and cater for what most Australian families require of a funeral. We do not have the elaborate big funeral home with its own chapel that you may get charged for even when you don’t need it. We do not have costly shop fronts on the main street of shopping centres or near hospitals with paid sales staff. What we do have is a modern and respectable registered mortuary and viewing room in Sydney’s South and we come to your home to arrange the funeral. We do very little advertising and you will not find us on the tv, radio or on billboards because we avoid these expensive costs and pass the savings onto you. We prefer to let our good service be our advertisement and word of mouth has helped us become a very fast growing company. We are simply proud to provide an affordable and more personal choice in the Sutherland Shire.
How soon can the funeral take place?
We usually advise families that a minimum of four working days is best to allow everyone to be notified of the funeral and for arrangements to be made including press notices. This can be longer if you are having family or friends traveling from overseas or interstate or if the coroner is involved. There is no need to see me, your funeral director, immediately after someone has passed away. Once you have phoned Sincerity Funerals we will organize to meet with you at your home, at a time that is convenient for everyone.
Will the same person look after me all the way through?
As the owner of Sincerity Funerals I pride myself on arranging and then conducting the funeral on every possible occasion. This means you are dealing with the family that owns the company from the start and you also have a recognisable face to greet you at the cemetery or church. I don’t know of any other company in the Sutherland Shire who offers this personal care.
Who do I need to notify?
After the initial contact with the doctors or police, and immediate family, there are other contacts that you should consider. Firstly the Executor of Will should be contacted. This will establish any pre-arrangements or legal wishes the deceased has for their funeral including any funeral funds, and this may even establish their choice of funeral director. Then contact departments like Centrelink or the Department of Veteran Affairs if the deceased was on a pension. These departments may even contribute funds towards the funeral and so might insurance companies, private health funds and unions the deceased was affiliated with. At Sincerity Funerals we get in contact with all associated R.S.L. and Sporting Clubs for you so that funeral details can be placed on vale boards etc.
Contact should also be made when possible to other groups responsible for:
- Employment i.e. workplace, superannuation, tax department,
Accountant
- Home i.e. housing authority, landlord, council, utility suppliers
- Insurance i.e. home, contents, car
- Motor Vehicle i.e. RTA, licence, registration
- Health i.e. Medicare, private health cover, dentist, physiotherapist
- Financial Institutions i.e. banks, credit unions, fund managers
It might also be helpful to have mail redirected by Australia Post to the executor or next of kin.
What is pre-planning, pre-paying and a funeral bond?
Pre-planning is simply listing your funeral wishes in writing and attaching them to your Will as a reference for your executor or family. Although not binding by common law, your wishes should be followed and this eases the stress on your family as in my experience loved ones can struggle to make decisions about what type of funeral you wanted in these emotional times. Please download and print the pre-planning documents linked below and consider having them attached to your Will. Alternatively contact us and we will post them to you. 9540 9559
PRE PLANNING DOCUMENTS
Pre-payment is where you pre-plan your funeral but also pay for it in advance with a funeral company. Most funeral directors promote this, as it locks your funeral in with their company and they earn the interest off the invested amount from the fund management group it is placed with. In my opinion these companies have raised their prices to compensate for the uncertainty of future funeral costs. Besides that, the biggest cost of a funeral is the cemetery fees and these are the prices most subjected to inflation. This is why funeral companies do not include them in their pre-payment contract, so you might still owe most of the money on your funeral when you die anyway. You also have no access to the funds you have paid even in an emergency such as illness or medical treatment, as your contract only allows payment upon death. At Sincerity Funerals we prefer to remain the most affordable now or whenever you need us so we do not advise a pre-paid funeral and suggest you invest to assure your peace of mind in both life and death.
Funeral Bonds are specifically designed to help you save for a future funeral with the advantage of providing you with up to $10,750 exemption from assets and income testing should you have contributed this amount. Also the annual bonuses paid into your benefit are exempt from personal income tax. Nominating a funeral director in advance is not compulsory and the money left over after the costs of the funeral are paid will be refunded to the estate. Again however, you will have no access to your funds for emergencies etc. but this is certainly the method we recommend if you wish to pre-pay. We can send you more information about Funeral Bonds if you contact us. 9540 9559.
How do I avoid being taken advantage of?
Never walk into a funeral home to organize someone’s passing without getting quotes first. From my experience, when working with other companies, I know there is a walk in price and a phone price.
Get a couple of quotes or if you aren’t up to this yourself, ask a close friend if they could do it for you. Whilst Sincerity Funerals is more affordable, a funeral is still an expensive necessity. A funeral could be the next most expensive purchase you make after a house, car, boat or wedding and you wouldn’t rush in to buy or organize any of these.
Do not feel pressured into choosing a more expensive coffin with the line, “surely mum deserved this”. It could be argued that a funeral is really for the living and not for the dead, so be sensible in your choices and don’t let emotions or sales people take advantage of you. This also applies to advertisements that play upon your emotions suggesting pre-paying or insurance. Without any cost you simply need to attach your funeral wishes to your Will to ease the burden of a loved one at your time of death. In my experience this is their main concern and this should be done no matter what funeral company you prefer.